Address at the NZ Marine Transport Association Annual Conference
Introduction
Good morning everyone. It's a pleasure to be here today at the NZ Marine Transport Association's annual conference.
I'd like to acknowledge your President Jeremy Ward, Secretary Alan Moore, Association members and Maritime New Zealand staff.
As you know, I took up the role of Associate Minister of Transport about three months ago. I can tell you that I am really enjoying the role. There is a lot going on in the transport sector and I am finding it very exciting.
It's great to be here in the beautiful Marlborough Sounds, home to some of New Zealand's best tourism opportunities and livelihoods for many people - and your sector plays a key part in this.
Contribution of marine transport operators
New Zealand has a highly diverse maritime sector.
Coastal shipping plays a key role in moving goods between our ports, while harbour ferries carry more than 4 million passengers a year in the Auckland region alone. A fleet of well over 3000 other vessels undertakes activities ranging from deep sea fishing to charter boat activities.
The role marine transport operators play in our domestic transport system should not go unrecognised.
As part of this important network, marine transport operators - large and small - make a significant contribution to New Zealand's economy and to their local communities, transporting passengers, carrying out tourism and other charter activities, and providing jobs and work that supports other related marine services.
And let's not forget adventure tourism with 100 commercial jet boats and 288 white water rafts, carrying almost half a million passengers per year.
On that note, you will have heard that the Prime Minister has ordered a cross-departmental investigation of the adventure tourism sector. This investigation will report back on the current situation and ways to improve risk management and safety.
Maritime New Zealand will be involved - alongside other agencies - in this work.
Challenges and opportunities - raising the safety bar
So, being a diverse sector means there are always challenges - and opportunities - for improvement.
Key to achieving safer, more secure and cleaner seas is the need for everyone in the maritime sector to work together to keep raising the bar and ensure a healthy, safe, and environmentally sustainable industry.
The government supports Maritime New Zealand in its role of leading and supporting the industry to meet these objectives which ultimately will benefit all New Zealanders.
There are always challenges for operators and regulatory agencies to overcome within any system. But the basic premise that operators are best placed to take personal responsibility for their own safety during day to day operations is a fundamentally sound principle that this government endorses.
Overall, the maritime transport sector has a very good safety record, but there will always be room for improvement.
Of concern at the moment is the increase in fatalities and accidents involving commercial vessels. While the increase is not specific to any one group analysis shows that the consistent theme in these events is a lack of safety culture.
I'm advised that Maritime New Zealand has increased its efforts to address the problem, with more one-on-one mentoring for operators and the redevelopment of educational material for operators.
Working in partnership with industry
However, raising standards across the board is not something that any one person, group or agency can do alone.
The government has charged Maritime New Zealand with leading and supporting the maritime industry to develop and maintain the highest standards. Your buy-in is needed to make this happen. I see a cooperative and collaborative approach between government agencies and industry as the key to progress.
I recognise that there will not be agreement on every issue. But I do believe we all want the same thing - a robust, safe and sustainable maritime transport system. And of course we want to see this coupled with simple and reasonable compliance requirements, and clear rules and regulations that are applied fairly and consistently.
Naturally, this must be balanced against the need for the regulator to recover the true cost of the various services it provides to industry, and maintain and develop existing and new safety initiatives in response to the needs of the sector.
I look forward to seeing the results of ongoing efforts in this field.
Maritime New Zealand initiatives underway
As I have said the government supports raising the bar for safety while making rules and regulations that are simpler and clearer for operators to follow.
Two notable examples of progress in this area are the current Maritime New Zealand reviews of Qualifications and Operational Limits, and of Safe Ship Management Rule Parts 21 and 46.
Both are wide-ranging reviews that affect everyone who operates a vessel and holds a maritime document. Your input as operators will be key to both reviews' ultimate success.
Your feedback will help shape the future management of both the commercial vessel safety system, and the qualifications and operational limits framework which ensures that appropriately qualified and skilled people work within the system.
Review of Qualifications and Operational Limits
The review of Qualifications and Operational Limits is one of the most significant projects ever undertaken by Maritime New Zealand. It will affect commercial operators throughout the industry.
It's acknowledged that the current qualifications and operational limits (QOL) framework presents challenges for commercial operators.
The review's objective, therefore, is to develop a clearer and more logical framework for QOL that meets the future needs of New Zealand's commercial maritime sector, allowing it to function effectively, while supporting industry objectives and standards.
Maritime New Zealand is currently involved in an extensive programme of one-on-one engagement with people in the industry from around the country. I understand that many of you have already freely given of your time to this initiative and others will do so over the coming months. Thank you for your contribution.
Industry will have an active role in shaping the future QOL framework through a staged consultation process over the next year or so. Maritime New Zealand will keep me updated on the review and I'll be watching with interest to see what final shape it will take.
Review of Safe Ship Management Rule Parts 21 and 46
Meanwhile, the review of the Safe Ship Management (SSM) system and Maritime Rule Parts 21 and 46 is the other key area being focused on. I understand Maritime New Zealand representatives will be talking about this topic over the next two days.
While the basic rationale of the SSM system - that operators are best placed to ensure their own safety on board - is good on the whole, I think it's fair to say that there is room for improvement in the delivery of the system.
Research tells us there has not been a sustained, long-term reduction in the number of fatalities, accidents or serious harm injuries under SSM despite operational improvements made over the past 10 years. This shows that the ‘human factor' is still by far the biggest cause of accidents - and that a stronger focus on safer day-to-day operations is needed.
I understand you will hear more about this tomorrow when Maritime New Zealand outlines its proposed thinking and seeks feedback on specific aspects of the future direction of the system, which I hope will generate constructive and robust debate.
While the final shape of the system is still to be decided, what I can say is that any new framework will incorporate and take forward the various improvements already made to SSM, such as Maritime New Zealand's increased focus on training and education for operators and service providers, and an improved fit and proper person checking process.
I am also assured that any new system will be phased in to allow all participants ample time to adjust to any changes that are made.
I look forward to hearing more about this as the thinking evolves during the consultation phase.
Government's direction for maritime transport sector
The government recognises the importance of the maritime transport system and the crucial part that operators like you play within it.
I acknowledge that the current financial and economic climate is tough on all operators, and as such, industry and government agencies need to ‘work smarter' and collaboratively together to achieve outcomes.
While this government is committed to ensuring compliance costs for businesses are kept at reasonable levels, when it comes to safety there's no room for cutting corners.
It is worth mentioning while I'm here that the maritime sector - like New Zealand - faces a number of challenges. Climate change is one of the most obvious.
The Emissions Trading Scheme is the government's key initiative in this regard. The government also announced changes to the New Zealand Emissions Trading Scheme to allow a smoother transition for participants and the economy by protecting against price volatility in the early years and to ensure affordability for New Zealanders given current financial constraints.
The government has decided to bring forward the start date for liquid fossil fuels from 1 January 2011 to 1 July 2010. However, the moderated ETS will feature a lower price for the first few years of no more than NZ$12.50 per tonne of carbon.
This means there will be a price increment for transport fuels of about 3.5 cents per litre, rather than about 7 cents per litre as previously indicated. Overall the combination of a change to the start date and a low-price phase will save money for transport operators and consumers.
Conclusion
Finally, I acknowledge the importance of forums such as this.
The Marine Transport Association and other sector groups make a valuable contribution towards improving safety in the sector and ensuring that its members' views continue to be represented.
And while industry and regulators won't necessarily always see eye to eye, I urge all parties to continue to work in partnership and build relationships to help ensure the marine environment stays safe, secure and clean.
Thank you.